Tuesday, 13 April 2021, 6:29 am
GENEVA (12 April 2021) – A UN expert called on the
Government of Lao PDR to immediately release three human
rights defenders who have been detained for more than five
years, saying their continued imprisonment was an impediment
to the advancement of human rights in the South-East Asian
nation.
A court in the capital, Vientiane, sentenced
Ms. Lodkham Thammavong, Mr. Soukane Chaithad and Mr.
Somphone Phimmasone to prison terms of up to 30 years in
2017 after they took part in a demonstration outside the Lao
Embassy in Thailand to express concerns over the
government’s human rights record. The three, who were